Saturday, March 31, 2012

tid bits 3

Andrew attempted a haircut but Kyle's razor broke halfway through- this had to be hand cut... he has yet to forgive Kyle 
SUCH  a disapointment

Eggplant starters- the perks of living with an Italian are endless

New Zealand's idea of "childcare"

Pimm's O'Clock!

our vicious guard dog Misty

Fun Facts:

  • Mascara costs $28- I'm talking about crap Loreal mascara
  • "diary" means your date/appointment book
  • our room is a hexagon teepee
  • Kyle is real close to having a pony tail...
  • We had Pimm's- a dry gin with fruit extract is a classic British drink. "Pimm's O'Clock!" courtesy of Joe, delish.
  • We have a new roommate, Juraj "yuri" or has we fondly call him Euro! He is Slovakian 
  • Euro outdoes every meal we attempt
  • just like American men, Joe and Andrew did not appreciate the Notebook for it's true glory
  • raisins are called Sultanas in New Zealand
  • they only have mini wheats... not frosted
  • bell peppers cost $2.50 EACH
  • we earned a free knife from the grocery store! made my week- nothing beats free stuff!
  • Today is the exact half way point of our journey!!
Lessons Learned:

Never leave your purse in the car. There is no such thing as being too careful! 
Unfortunately this was learned the hard way... my wallet, digital camera, and my beloved traveling companion Kate are long gone. 

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Workin' at Drylands


We have finally started our long awaited winery job. We are working at Drylands Winery and Vineyard in Blenheim, New Zealand. Blenheim is the wine epicenter of New Zealand and makes some of the best Sauvignon Blanc in the world. Drylands makes primarily Sauvignon Blanc, but also makes some Reisling, Pinot Gris, and Pinot Noir.

We have been hired to work during Vintage, which is known as The Crush in America. It is the time when all the grapes are harvested and processed. In Blenheim this normally takes 6-8 weeks, but because of the strange weather this year we are only expecting to work 5 weeks.

When we came all we knew was that Kyle was hired as a cellar hand, and Olivia was going to be on the weighbridge crew. We did not know if we would be out in the fields picking grapes, or in an office pushing papers. We have now been on the job 3 days, and are beginning to get an understanding for what we will be doing.

When the trucks of grapes arrive at the winery they all must be weighed to see how many tons of grapes are being dropped off. Olivia has the trucks drive onto a bridge and weighs them. She then inputs all of the data in an accounting system that tracks the fruit and juice. This information is very important because it allows the winemakers to know what type of grapes have arrived, where they are coming from, how much they weigh, and what time they have arrived.

Kyle is working on the press. Drylands has 5 presses, all of which can process 50-75 tons of grapes at a time. These presses, crush the grapes to get the juice out. Kyle is responsible for making sure the press is operating correctly, and that after the grapes have been pressed, the juice gets sent to the right holding tanks. This involves setting up a series of pumps and huge hoses from the crusher to the tanks, cleaning the tanks and the crusher, and ensuring that the right amount of juice is added to each of the tanks.

Although these are our technical jobs, this is not what we have been doing this week. As you can see in the pictures, Drylands is one of the largest wineries in the area- that means a lot of tanks and a lot of equipment. But most importantly, this means a shit ton of cleaning. We have a crew of 40 people working this whole week to clean the entire operation in order to prepare for the harvest. Olivia has been climbing in the crusher scrubbing bird droppings while Kyle has been cleaning tanks. 

Neither of these jobs is very glamorous, but it is giving us a great opportunity to learn about the winemaking process. Next week the grapes will start rolling in by the truckload and we will be working from 7am-7pm 6 days a week. Once harvest begins we will be receiving 50 tons of grapes an hour.  The next few weeks should be pretty hectic, but we cannot wait to keep learning at Dryands.

(Keep in mind that wine making is an industrial profession- the romantic, quaint side will be posted soon)
The Boys ready for work before dawn. The Smerf suits were complimentary.  Olivia thinks her pair of Gum boots are cute and wants to take them home. Kyle usually gets rid of the jump suit and can be seen running around in his rugby shorts and tank top.

We have been at work for an hour... You are looking at the Tippy Tanks. (they literally tip onto their sides) Drylands has tanks from 5,000L to  200,000L.

The one and only tool you must always have. You may know it as a wrench but apparently it is actually a spinner. You need these wrenches to connect all the hoses and pumps.

Inside the cellar. These are the smallest tanks for perfecting the wine.

Looking out over the tankfield with the main Drylands building in the distance

This is a glorified box of wine, only the box is a shipping container. We do not bottle any of the wine on location so everything we ship out is in bags in containers like this one. Guess where this one is headed?? None other than the beautiful port of Oakland, CA!

One of the 5 presses Kyle will be working on. The container on the bottom  is called the coffin and that is where the grape juice drains to.

First juice of the year filling the coffin. Pinot Noir!

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

klever kiwis

If you had one word to describe a kiwi it would have to be quirky. Their style, their cuisine, their entertainment, their humor- everything. Mailboxes are the perfect example of this. Kiwis take the mail as an oppurtunity to express their quirky, creative personalities. It appears as if every neighborhood has an ongoing competition of who can come up with the most unique contraption. Here are a few snapshots from ONE street in the small, boring town of Blenheim.

(the title is a shout out to my kappa lovelies- lylas)

succulents  
can you guess what its made of?? 
yes, that is a boat motor

Friday, March 23, 2012

the roommates

malborough coast

meet andrew

the american

the british

the italian 

mussel feast

a REAL dinner

cake!
I cannot express how much Kyle and I are loving living in a real house! Yesterday Kyle took two showers, just because he could. I was dying to cook a real meal and the cherry on top... baking! We are living in heaven!

Part of that slice of heaven includes our two roommates. Joe is a sweetheart jock from the United Kingdom. He has an awesome british accent and is a rabid rugby fan. Finally some male company for poor Kyle. He too just graduated and this is his first Vintage.

Andrew is the classic Italian. Chatty, hilarious, and full of fun. His obsessive use of the word "shit" along with his fascination with Peanut Butter has been more than entertaining.

We finally had a day of sunshine and went straight for the beach. It wasn't the most beautiful beach you've ever seen but the water was blue and so was the sky- no complaints here. Being a typical southern italian, Andrew ran straight for the mussels at the beach and cooked up some "delicious" mussels appetizers for dinner. I did not dare put those slimy chewy things in my mouth but Kyle bravely ate a handful.

We are loving having some friends and entertainment! Monday the work begins...

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

moved in

main garden

our bedroom patio

We are officially moved in! This morning we unloaded old Ace, which took a total of 5 minutes, and settled into the cottage. The gardens are what make this cottage so damn cute. The wild flowers, bright green lawns, and vegetable boxes make quite a gorgeous backyard. We could hardly contain our excitement when we spotted the dresser- finally real drawers! As much as we love Ace, we were more than over living out of a van. I think he knew what we were up to because he acted up the whole morning...

Picton

just to give you an idea of the wind...

delicious
We said our final farewells to our beloved Nelson and headed East. Picton is the ferry town that is the main connection between the North and South Islands. We were unfortunately greeted with the most bizarre weather of the trip. The drive put Ace to the test as we were blown all over the road by 75MPH winds. Ace is not as big as he seems and is easily pushed around. We survived and spent the day huddled in the back of Ace reading books, watching movies, and drinking wine straight from the bottle. The storm did not die down and we spent the night being rocked back and forth by giant gusts. Luckily the trip was salvaged by the best French Toast I have ever had (except of course my Dad's).

Monday, March 19, 2012

life

the BEST pizza

outside our favorite cafe

sweeter than candy

our best purchase yet- sweatpants

meet Trinny, my Bailey substitute in Nelson

musician swag


We are now back in Nelson! It definitely feels like home at this point as we are now on our third stint here. We of course B-lined for my favorite cafĂ©, Columbus. I have been declining a regular’s card, thinking that we would not be coming back to this town again. The owner finally called me out saying he can remember me coming at least three times and that I had to get a regulars card. Blushing, I accepted and was even eligible for a free cappuccino after all of our visits! The husband and wife who own it already know our order by heart. Tonight we are treating ourselves to dinner and a movie for a little taste of normalcy. 

Wharariki Beach

the only decent picture from our inlet adventure

pastoral walk to the beach
blue skies!

headed down the dunes

view from the cave


rock island

one of the thousands of birds we were dodging on the road


We spent the night in Takaka. Laundry cost $8 but was more than worth it. We now have an entire box of Bounce Sheets shoved in every nook and cranny of Ace. (Especially in our sleeping bags)

We have 5 days to kill until we need to be at work so we decided to head up to Golden Bay. Our shuttle bus driver, Rory, had recommended a beautiful drive and we took him up on it. After three days of perfect sunshine we were reminded that we were still in NZ with a bout of rain. We headed up the coast and found ourselves on a gravel road in the middle of nowhere. The gorgeous inlet we were promised was far from breathtaking and we were forced to turn around. Many of you might be familiar with the gorgeous NZ landscapes from the Lord of The Rings series. The Hobbit is currently being filmed here and this was supposedly a filming location- we were not impressed.

Today also happens to be Sunday, which means that all of NZ is closed. From gas stations to coffee shops- nothing is open. We were both dying for a cappuccino and some hot food but were disappointed with many, many closed signs.

However the day was more than worth it once we arrived at Wharariki Beach. A gravel road and short hike later we were rewarded with the most classic, breathtaking beach. It was everything you imagine the West Coast to be and more. Giant sand dunes dump you onto a long expanse of butter soft sand. Huge rock formations line the shore with caves and everything. On one of the many awe-inspiring rock islands we even got to see baby seals! (Seal pups never get old, especially when they are unsuccessfully trying to climb rocks.) To make things even more perfect, the sun came out just as we hit the beach. 

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Tassman 3

our biggest packs yet

a little too excited about the barefoot shoes

can't resist a bordercollie!

low tide crossing
Adele Island

We woke up early- or maybe never went to sleep. The combination of sea water, river water, three days of physical activity, and anything else you want to imagine that created a scarily pungent scent plus sleeping on hard ground = zero sleep. We were off and running for our 20K hike out of Tassman National Park. (A little over 13 miles, Trey) Since we had left our hiking boots in Nelson… woops! We both hiked in different shoes- Kyle in barefoot shoes. As much as we tried to enjoy the beauty we were hauling ass to get out of there. We averaged 6K an hour and both ended the hike with giant blisters.

The beaches of Tassman were beyond words. You would have thought we were in Tahiti or Hawaii from the brilliant blue coloring of the water. We were so lucky to have three days of complete sunshine to thoroughly enjoy the natural wonders. The best way to see Tassman is by kayak and we are thrilled we got the chance to experience it. It was by far my favorite of the Great Walks (Kyle claims he wasn't that impressed!).

Tassman 2

morning sunrise


anchorage bay

pup feeding

this seal pup did not like me disturbing his snack time

beach picnic

before the plunge

completely lopsided but standing

i wasn't lying about his fear of birds... even cute ducks

The second day was even more gorgeous than the first. We knew we had a lot more distance to cover than the first day so we set off at sunrise to beat the ocean breeze. The mad we were using looked more like a treasure map than an actual helpful guide. We were a bit disoriented and exhausted so we pulled off at the closest beach… It was 10am (2 hours of kayaking) and we were already past our destination. We must be just as fast at paddling as we are at walking. We laughed it off and felt a little better about our aching shoulders. However, on our treasure map there was one singular beach that had in bold red writing, “do not land”. Guess which beach we were on?? After a treacherous entry that we, of course, skillfully managed- we were back to the water again. Next stop- baby seal nursery.

It is baby season in this area and because the water is “warm” the moms bring their pups to Tassman Sea. Both days we got up close and personal for feeding sessions! We got to see the pups climbing all over their moms in search for some milk. We were so close we could even see which nipple was involved! Despite our awesome views, it is quite difficult to capture on camera. I apologize in advance for the lack of good seal pictures but it is quite difficult when you are in a bouncing kayak trying to snap a pic of seals that blend in perfectly with the rocks.

We started the kayak trek back to Bark Bay where we were to spend the second night. We were kayaking along the coast that was littered with spectacular little coves that harbored long stretching beaches. There must have been over 30 beaches on this little stretch of coast. We made it to Bark Bay by 1pm and spent the afternoon laying on the beach. They came and picked up our kayak just in time for high tide. High tide means that the rivers that drain into the sea are also at their peak height… Kyle took this as the perfect opportunity to jump off a bridge. We walked a couple kilometers to a swing bridge and I had to brave watching Kyle leap 45 feet into a clear blue river. After bungee I was not going to hop in after him.